Today we’d like to introduce you to Women In Architecture Aia Austin Chapter
Hi Women in Architecture, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Women in Architecture was conceived as a product of an exhibit called Shape the Conversation, held in Austin in 2017. This exhibit showcased and celebrated the story of many women in the Austin Design community. The exhibit evolved into a living committee and part of the AIA Austin Chapter. Despite the finite run of the exhibit, the essence of community uplift continues on. AIA Austin WiA has continued to grow each year in its outreach, as chairs and subcommittee leadership contribute new facets to the mission.
The AIA Austin WiA legacy is owed to nearly a decade of committee chairs and trailblazers that founded and continually support WiA. Those include
Trailblazers and Supporters of WiA: Wendy Dunam Tita, Heather McKinney, Donna Carter
AIA Austin WiA Chairs: Megan McCoy, Maggie McIntosh, Christy Taylor, Jes Deaver, Nkiru Gelles, Stephanie Lemmo, Carina Coel, Ashton Brooks, Alexandra Chaves, & Danielle Smith
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
A large portion of the committee’s focus is recurring year to year. WiA is an organization that is fueled by the generous donation of sponsorships and the volunteering of individuals’ time and talent. Fortunately, WiA is surrounded by a supportive community that continually invests in the mission of the committee.
More recently, we have encountered struggles with state regulations that do not allow us to promote scholarships available at the university level. It is disheartening to be limited in the legal ways an organization can announce availability of support to students, as the intention of the scholarship is to increase the representation of women in architecture by minimizing the monetary barrier of entry at the education level.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Organization: AIA Austin Women in Architecture
AIA Austin WiA’s mission is to promote, validate, and illuminate the role of women within the architectural field through fostering community, fellowship, education, and outreach in the Austin design community.
The committee puts this mission into practice with several Calls to Action and initiatives to remove barriers for women in architecture at all points in their career, from highschool to university, licensure to motherhood. WiA creates opportunities for individuals to join and build a community as well participate in initiatives to increase representation of women across the industry.
WiA’s initiatives include:
1.AIA Austin WiA Call to Action Initiatives typically encapsulates panels and mentorship events throughout the year. They include:
a. Highschool
b. College
c. Motherhood
d. Licensure
2. AIA Austin WiA community and fellowship building initiatives include:
a. Site Tours
b. Spotlight Series
c. Profiles Video Interviews
d. Happy Hours and Coffee & Coworking
e. Book Club
3. The WiA scholarship/sponsorship support initiative to raise funding for and distribute monetary support include:
a. The AIA Austin WiA / Design Austin Donna D Carter Scholarship at the University of Texas School of Architecture
b. AIA Austin WiA Licensure Sponsorships
c. AIA Austin WiA / AIA Leadership Collective Sponsorships
d. AIA Austin WiA / AIA Austin Homes Tour Sponsorships
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
– An ongoing lesson learned is that there is a balance between the vital community building of in-person events and the accessibility afforded with a virtual meeting. Both have their place, and both play a critical role for the AIA Austin WiA committee.
– During the pandemic, our committee moved our monthly meetings to Virtual. The attendance of these meetings rose to more than it had been previously with in-person morning meetings. We’ve never moved these meetings back to in-person because we found that for these overarching monthly summary meetings, it is so much more valuable to make them accessible to as many people as possible. These are the meetings that people come to to find out what other committee initiatives are up to, any upcoming events to join, and how they might get involved. The events then are where we build community in person.
– Last month, for example, we had a woman who is about to move to Austin join the meeting. She was looking to see where she could plug in when she does get to Austin, and she found us! We also have a lot of mothers who want to be involved, but schedules don’t allow for them to make it across town to join these meetings. Virtual meetings increase participation and impact.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://aiaaustin.org/committees/women-in-architecture/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wia_austin/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WiAAustin
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/women-in-architecture-austin/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2yUp1efrUnc&list=PL64jfwlSDBrRzKsvSB5B0l4_VpeGvpMDz
- Other: https://linktr.ee/WiA_Austin
Image Credits
Patrick Wong (2024 Scholarship Dinner & Design Awards)
Killy photography (TxA Mentorship Award)
